


The King of Snakes: The Elixir of Life

by Marble_Spider



Series: The King of Snakes [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Abusive Dursley Family (Harry Potter), Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Betaed, Credence Barebone changes his name to Credence Aurelius Dumbledore, Credence and Nagini Dumbledore are Tom's adoptive parents, Dudley is a parselmouth and translates, Dudley is abused too, Evil Albus Dumbledore, Evil Gryffindors, Evil Order of Phoenix, Gen, Good Dudley Dursley, Good Slytherins, Good Tom Riddle, Gryffindor Dudley Dursley, Harry speaks parseltongue and hates speaking English, Magical Dudley Dursley, Male maledictus Harry, Nagini's full name before marriage is Nagini Kim, Slytherin Harry Potter, Tom Riddle changes his name to Tom Valentino Dumbledore upon getting adopted, Underage relationships are for future books, War with Grindelwald
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-06
Updated: 2019-06-23
Packaged: 2020-04-12 02:13:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,947
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19122502
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Marble_Spider/pseuds/Marble_Spider
Summary: Tom Valentino Dumbledore, né Marvolo Riddle, never became Voldemort and instead became the youngest headmaster Hogwarts had ever had. Instead Albus Dumbledore chose to side with his lover and died trying to kill the one prophesied to destroy Grindelwald. Albus had a secret though: Six horcruxes hidden in plain sight that only he and Grindelwald knew about.Now, eleven years after Albus's death Gellert has finally found the one that killed him and with the Order at his beck and call nothing will stop him from bringing him back and enacting his revenge not even death itself, for family is greater than death.





	1. The abrupt alliance

**Author's Note:**

> This is a work of fiction and I do not own the base of Harry Potter although I am changing the characters/beasts to fit this story.
> 
> Points to remember::
> 
> Parseltounge will always be in italics and double S's at the end of a word ending with the letter will be included.
> 
> I will post additional triggers/warnings here for future chapters

The letters followed them from his glass tank in the cupboard under the stairs, to the motel two towns over and finally to a rickety shack in the middle of a swamp that Uncle Vernon had somehow found. The letters outshined the fact that it was now his birthday. He wasn't surprised though since his birthday is forgotten every year. The only good thing about them leaving the house abruptly to escape the letters was that no one had thought to load his tank with them so he was free to roam around the room in his skin. It only took Dudley seconds to realize that the most integral piece of their lives was missing once Vernon had announced there were only two beds.

 

"That's fine. Harry can sleep in his tank like always." Dudley replied with his mouth full of sausage. 

 

Petunia had taken to cooking the others a meal of thick sausage and grits on the stove while Harry snuck in a few pieces of leftover broccoli he had stashed in his trouser pockets before they left. His teeth tingle when Dudley suddenly wafted his extra sausage in his face. Both completely aware that Harry wasn't allowed to eat it as they kept him on a strict vegetable scraps only diet. Which basically meant that whenever Petunia cooked vegetables with their meals, once every few weeks or so, Harry was allowed to eat a few handfuls of whatever they had after the plates had been sitting in the sink and doused in water for rinsing during which most of the scraps were washed down the drain.

 

His scales vibrated over his skin as he watched his family dig into the food once it was fully cooked. He ached to change into his snake form, knowing he was much faster in it than his human one, and steal a bit of meat from one of them. He hadn't had any since they first found out he could turn into a snake when he was seven. He wasn't even sure why he changed forms anymore as it was so long ago, only that ever since then his bed in his cupboard had been replaced with a table and a medium fish tank Uncle Vernon had found after the incident. 

 

According to his Aunt and Uncle he had bit Dudley's foot and had sent him straight to the hospital due to poisoning. The doctor had said that whatever bit him had been "highly venomous" and "not of this region" only to advise him to stay away from the snake he found if he came across it again and urged the adults to call the humane society so they can relocate the snake back to its natural habitat if they found it again. The bite mark from the wound suggested that the snake had been an eastern indigo snake.

 

It was only years later when Harry happened to be in the library at school that he had found out that the eastern indigo snake, while large in size, was actually non-venomous and typically ate small mammals and eggs. He was certain that his Aunt knew this as well since she was the one that implemented his vegetarian diet after his initial transformation.

 

Unfortunately, when he asked her why he could change into a snake she just sneered at him and told him it was a repulsive family trait that he got from his mother. Which made his Uncle pipe up that his father wasn't much better since he was a damn binder. He still wasn't sure how his father was a stationary item but had just chalked his Uncle's words up to him being too dumb to comprehend what the adult actually meant.

 

His bangs tickled the tops of his eyes, breaking him out of his reverie as he pushed them out of his face for what felt like the tenth time that night. His unruly red hair was a constant problem in his life and no matter how much gel Aunt Petunia tried to slather on it always somehow managed to look like the broken bristles of a witch's broom he had seen in comics in the school newspaper. His eyes weren't any better unfortunately. Instead of having normal colored eyes, his were yellow like an owl, with a ring of dark green around them. The Dursley's made him wear obnoxiously big circular glasses that didn't even have lenses in them and told people he wore colored contacts to cover up the abnormality. He rather liked his eyes though, as they were the only constant in either of his forms.

 

Though his scar, he thought, was the worst of all. It sat rather proudly on the left side of his forehead and looked like a burst of silvery white lightning that refused to conform to the rest of his chestnut skin tone. His hair refused to cover it no matter how long it got and seemed almost personally offended when Harry would try to force it to do so, sticking out even more with renewed static from his hands coursing through the strands and encouraged their defiance.

 

The sudden kick to his shins that Dudley gave him stirred him from his thoughts. Groaning in pain, he glared at his cousin.

 

"What?" Harry asked through clenched teeth in English. The language sounded foul on his tongue,  like week old moldy vegetables that he only ate because he didn't have anything else available. He much preferred to speak like the snakes that came into Aunt Petunia's garden but he also knew the others frowned upon it. They said it was unnatural and horrid but Harry thought the same thing about English so he supposed fair was fair.

 

"Mum said you get the corner of the floor and I get the other bed." Dudley smirked with a haughty reply.

 

Harry let out a small huff in response and wished he'd speak to him like he used to before he turned into Vernon's little soldier. Sure Dudley had been mean to him when his parents were around but that was because Vernon and Petunia were horrible people and could be quite scary to a small child. Before Harry turned into a snake and bit him for being a dunce though they used to use snake-speak with each other all the time and had been quite close when behind doors. 

 

He sighed in defeat and went to curl up on the floor as Petunia cleaned the dishes all the while, humming an annoying tune. He knew it was a nervous tick of hers from years of exposure to it and that it often meant bad things were about to happen to him. However, nothing did this time, and the other three residents of the creaky cabin lulled themselves to sleep eventually.

 

Once everyone else fell asleep Harry got two of the letters he had managed to snag from the air before they left to read their contents. He winced when he felt Dudley sit beside him and expected a blow to the head only for him to whisper hastily to get on with it. Both of them held their breath in anticipation as Harry handed one to his cousin and opened them at the same time. Bafflement was the only thing he felt as Harry read the contents of the letter in his hands:

 

_ Dear Mr. D. Dursley, _

 

_ We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment. _

 

_ Term begins on the 1st of September. We await your owl no later than 31st July. _

 

_ Yours sincerely, _

 

_ Minerva Mcgonagall  _

**Deputy Headmistress**

 

"Dudley... this is about you. Why is it about  _ you _ ? You're not…" Like me, wrong, different, he wanted to say to his cousin but couldn't bring himself to utter the words.

 

"What the bloody hell are you talking about? This thing clearly says your name and not mine! I'm not like you. Stop making fun of me Harry!" Dudley whispered loudly.

 

"I'm not I swear! See, look."

 

Harry shoved his letter in Dudley's hands and his own letter was shoved none to gently at him. He wasn't sure if it was the force of the shove that Dudley gave him or the fact that he was so thin that made him almost go backwards. Split second panic rose in him as he started to fall over only for his wrist closest to his cousin to be pulled back gently which Harry assumed was a reflex for the other when it wasn't acknowledged. His cousin favored skimming his own letter instead and Harry saw the exact moment Dudley realized Vernon wouldn't show mercy due to their blood relation.

 

"He's gonna kill me." Dudley whispered out.

 

"So I'm… magic? You're magic? We're both magic?" Harry asked to confirm the mass confusion in his head.

 

"Apparently. It doesn't make sense though. I mean, I get  _ you _ ... but me? I haven't done anything magical in my life. I'm perfectly, boringly ordinary just like  _ him _ ." 

 

It was strange how one word, like him, could be filled with love one second then so much hate and fear it consumed your very core the next. Harry was thankful for it though because for the first time in their lives since the accident he felt like they were finally on the same page on how awful the elder Dursleys really were. Petunia was more passive but Vernon was known to favor his fists more than words and knew where to strike so as to not raise suspicion. 

 

"Well according to this you aren't. Maybe you blocked it out when you did something magical because you thought he wouldn't love you anymore?"

 

"He won't. He hates  _ you _ . We both know he does. Mum though… I think she likes you, or wants to at least. Like maybe she's afraid to show it because she's afraid of him? I mean, it wouldn't be very far fetched considering how he treats you. Would it?"

 

Harry honestly wasn't sure how to respond to that. Especially since Aunt Petunia was the one who restricted his diet and kept him locked up most of the time. While Vernon doled out the more physical punishments to him and thought that keeping him locked up was a pointless endeavor. 

 

"Are you afraid of him?" 

 

"Currently? Terrified." 

 

Harry just nodded beside him since he wasn't sure if he should say anything else. Was there a truce between them now that they were similar or was Dudley going to deny it and still torture him? Deciding it was better to not ask, he took off his glasses, frames really as they had no lenses, and readied himself to curl up on the floor, debating whether or not to sleep in his scales when Dudley spoke up once more.

 

"You know you could…. Um… I mean the bed is big enough for the both of us I think. Only if you want that is?"

 

Harry blinked slowly in return and felt like the world had spun up around him only to jerk him back to the ground just as quick. His brain tried to play out all the scenarios that this could be a trick, after all they were in the middle of nowhere and practically no one knew he existed other than these Hogwarts people. They could leave him here the next morning and Dudley would act like Harry never even existed just like always. He wanted to say yes. If he were being honest with himself then he would even go so far as to say that he wanted them to be friends… eventually.

 

He debated on what to tell Dudley that wouldn't be overtly rude, as in: 'No, we can't both fit because you're a giant pig', since he's pretty sure the other boy was trying to extend some semblance of peace before the oncoming storm that was Vernon Dursley. So instead he just nodded, turned into his snake form and allowed Dudley to pick him up to set him on the bed gently. He honestly didn't know the other boy could be gentle, especially not when it came to him.

  
  


_ "Thanksss"  _ Harry replied thoughtlessly once Dudley let go.

 

_ "You're welcome." _

  
  


Harry knew that if he were in his skin then he'd be smiling at Dudley's automatic hiss, however small it was of a reply. At the moment though he was too tired to do anything else, including acknowledging his cousins' fumbling tongue, other than curl up under the other pillow so that he was encased in complete darkness and close his eyes as Dudley got dressed. He listened to the roughness of the clothes as they moved over Dudley's skin and could taste the scent of them on the air when he flicked his tongue out. 

 

_ "Hey Harry?" _ Dudley whispered as he pulled the covers over him once he got into bed.

 

Harry poked his black head out from under the pillow and glanced over at his cousin. He was certain that if snakes could look drowsy then he would look exhausted. The bruises on his ribs were burning from all the moving around he had to do in their hasty escape from the letters and he was fairly certain one of them was broken. His stomach growled in contempt once more as he waited on Dudley to speak. Even his scales somehow ached from exhaustion and he couldn't for the life of him remember the last time he had drank something. He knew if he looked in the mirror in his skin form that his eyes would have dark circles under them and his ribs would be sticking out under Dudley's hand-me-downs.

 

_ "What do you thinksss gonna happen tomorrow? They aren't going to leave usss out here are- are they?" _ His voice quivered with fear as the words were spoken.

 

_ "I'm not sure. Guess we'll see what happensss in the morning **."** _

 

_ "Suppose you're right."  _ Dudley hissed back in a defeated tone. He was sounding more and more like a scared child with each second that passed.

 

_ "Night Harry."  _ He mumbled out against his pillow after a brief silence. The words came out thick with the general haze of sleep ringing in them. 

 

Harry didn't bother replying and decided instead to move out from under the pillow and curl up near Dudley's form as he fell into the sweet embrace of slumber. He didn't really like sleeping out in the open but he figured it showed that he had Dudley's back since he was faster than the other in case the adults tried anything during the night.


	2. The Oruwin's nest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry and Dudley meet Professor Snape, take the knight bus to Diagon alley and Dudley makes a friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just for clarification: Petunia and Vernon know that Dudley can speak parseltounge, but don't know the name for it, and discouraged him from speaking it with Harry previously but now that Dudley is going to be on the same playing field as Harry he doesn't care about what they think.

When Dudley woke up the next morning it felt like he was covered in a thick blanket and then his mother started shrieking bloody murder. He turned around onto his back and felt the blanket move with him.  _ Odd  _ he thought as he shifted on the bed. The blanket was warm enough but it also felt oddly smooth and heavier than he was used to. The more conscious he became, the more he wanted to fall right back to sleep as his mother's shrieking filtered into his ears like fingernails on a chalkboard. 

 

Groaning rather loudly, Dudley sat up as much as he could with the added weight on his still sleep-addled form and rubbed his eyes. He resisted the urge to curse at his mother when her ridiculous noises turned into actual words, most of which had the word brute or beast situated somewhere in her small horrid sentences. 

 

"Get off him you vile creature!" Petunia screamed out just as the world around him came into focus.

 

Looking down slowly he finally understood why his mother was making such a fuss so early in the morning. Apparently at some point in the middle of the night Harry had turned into a rather large boa constrictor. He was using Dudley as a pillow and bed with his head contently resting on Dudley's chest while the rest of him lazily curled up on his stomach with his tail drooping to the side and landing on the bed by his legs. Admittedly Dudley could see how she'd be worried Harry was trying to kill him and would probably think so too if he were in her position but all he saw was the other boy trying to protect him the only way he knew how.

 

_ How on earth is he still sleeping? _ Dudley thought as he got a hand out from under the snake and poked him in between his eyes. 

 

The giant snake laying on him scrunched up his face and flashed his fangs, which was a very non-snake thing to do. Contrary to what most thought, Dudley wasn't an idiot and always knew that Harry didn't eat nearly enough because of his parents rules. He also knew that if they had a choice of raising Harry as a human or something else that they were going to choose the other form so that he really "didn't exist", as they so enjoyed reminding the boys. So he figured that if his parents were more than likely going to force his cousin to live his life in this new form then the least he could do is try to sneak him the correct food and be able to read his body language. 

 

He had started researching the day after Harry bit him and had every intention of telling him all he had learned about snakes when he got home that day only to find Harry's door had odd pieces of metal attached to it. The normal knob had been taken down and replaced with a knob that had a keypad above it. 

 

Upon questioning the odd change his father had told him that "If that thing wants to act like a beast, then he'll be treated like one! You'd better not mess with it either or you'll regret it and there will be no more hissing out of you! I'll treat you just like I treat that thing if you do! I won't have a damned traitor living in my house!"

 

To this day Dudley had never been sure if he wasn't supposed to mess with the new knob or if his father had meant he could no longer be friends with Harry. His childish mind had accepted quicker than he'd now like to admit that he reasoned it meant both and took Vernon's words to heart, especially when he had mentioned their special language. Regrettably, he began treating his former friend just like his father did while his mother just watched from the sidelines with small noises of encouragement when Vernon was around. 

 

Over the years other shiny new attachments adorned Harry's door and eventually called it home while others were removed when Vernon saw fit. When they were eight Vernon installed a peephole so he could check on Harry and make sure he was still a "disgusting reptilian worm" when he thought he heard too much movement coming from inside the small room. Only for it to be removed a month later when one of his father's business friends commented on the oddity of it at dinner. 

 

Then at nine there was the addition of the invisible door lock that didn't have a traditional knob which replaced the previous keypad handle after Vernon broke it in a fit of rage when he forgot the code. With the new addition he installed a new keypad that came with a remote control he kept on him at all times. Which was the exact same one that had lasted for the past three years.

 

Dudley was actually surprised when he didn't hear the little keypad smacking against his father's hip in the cabin as it had become a constant presence throughout the years but then his mother was still yelling at a still sleeping Harry and overwhelming his ears of anything else going on.

 

He debated on poking Harry once more or trying to talk him awake instead and decided on the latter, figuring he'd rather not get bit so early in the morning even if it was an accident.

 

_ "Harry? You need to wake up. You're scaring mum." _

 

_ "Good."  _ Came the rather smug reply from the snake who seemed much more awake than Dudley had thought.

 

_ "How long have you been awake exactly?" _

 

_ "Not sure, thought if I faked it a bit more then she'd shut up. Plus I didn't smell Vernon around so I figured I could get away with it until you woke up."  _

 

Minutes passed and Dudley sat up in bed only for Harry to follow him as much as he could as a snake. He glanced around the room and saw his mother packing her bag back up, glaring at him while she did. Vernon came back in and scowled at them. Mumbled under his breath that they were ingrates and mimicked Petunia. 

 

Harry sent out a small hiss at them when either got close and would rub his head against Dudley's chest right after. With each hiss he sent their way they would flinch more than the last so that it became an odd sort of dance with the three of them. Dudley ignored his parents and focused on Harry's odd display of affection instead. All of the books he had read and internet searches he had done had given him three answers for the behavior.

 

_ "You're either sick, starting to shed or you're being territorial. Either way it'sss adorable."  _ His words caught in his throat when he thought Harry would be offended and think he didn't want to be friends or wanted him dead. _ "Not that I want you to be sick! Just that you rubbing your nose against me as a snake looksss cute."  _ Dudley said hastily trying to salvage the meaning of his words.

 

He knew that they had things to work on, certain things Dudley couldn't do around him without making Harry flinch or flee in terror, and that he would have to learn all of them before Harry felt completely comfortable but this was nice and it was a start.

 

Dudley watched with an awkward smile as Harry lifted himself up and tilted his head in an inquisitive manner and flicked his tongue out. 

 

_ "How do you know that?" _

 

A blush formed across Dudley's cheeks when he realized what he had gotten himself into. He immediately realized Harry never knew about all of the research he had put in to understand snakes better. Even now he often asked for at least one snake book for his birthday or Christmas, not that he ever got them but he still tried. There were two things that they were never allowed to do in the Dursley household: mention anything about magic, and say that snakes of any kind were good.

 

_ "I um… I used to look up all kindsss of things about snakesss so I could know when you were upset in thisss form. I still do actually when I'm at school. I used to ask for snake booksss for my birthday or Christmasss thinking that they'd give them to me. They never did though so I had to do all my research at school. The face rubbing thing is one of the first thingsss I learned. That and the kind of snake you turn, turned now I guess, into." _

 

The snake stilled in Dudley's lap, he really wished they had better facial expressions so he could tell what his cousin was thinking. Knowing that he couldn't actually see into his cousin's head he turned his attention to his parents instead. His mother had a thin smile on her face that looked more like a grimace. He was so used to her looking at Harry like that that he never imagined she'd look at him the same way. Nevermind the fact that they have no idea what it meant to be a wizard or what's expected of them anymore. 

 

His father just looked purely disgusted and so red faced he looked like he was going to explode at any second. He kept turning around to look at them from the door and would scowl only to have Petunia look pointedly at him. Her hair was unmade and lightly touched her shoulders while she wrung her hands in her light blue flowered dress like she was afraid if she did anything else she might break.

 

"You! Make that  _ thing  _ change back immediately and get dressed or we're leaving without you!" Vernon shouted at them from the door with his hand on the knob.

 

Dudley rolled his eyes and fought back the urge to yell at the man that Harry was a person, not a thing. He didn't because he knew it would get him nowhere and probably in even more trouble later on. So instead he trudged to the small bathroom with his cousin slithering at his heels. Thankfully his and Harry's clothes were already in the bathroom when they got there.  _ Probably mum's doing. _ He thought before he saw Harry change back to human. His pajamas, like all of his clothes, were Dudley's from two years ago and made him look like a small doll trapped inside of a pillowcase. Harry didn't seem to notice him watching, or didn't care, as he turned around and took off his shirt only to put on an equally large t-shirt and sweater. 

 

Dudley fought back the urge to gasp as Harry's back was momentarily exposed and he saw all of the bruises and scarred slices that adorned it. It was no wonder why he wore two layers all the time. Anyone with half a brain could tell Harry was starving and given everything that had happened during the last few hours it made him wonder why no adults had ever commented on it. He turned his back to the other boy and got dressed himself as Harry started removing his pajama bottoms. By the time he was done Harry was perched on the toilet like a bird and staring at him, the odd bright green around the edges of his eyes seemed even brighter than normal for some reason. 

 

They left the small bathroom and were greeted with his parents yelling at some long haired man with a rather large nose. Dudley thought he looked like his old math teacher Mr. Wilder who wasn't one of his favorites, then again he didn't really like any of them. The man was glaring at his parents and his father seemed to be squirming under his gaze. If Dudley had seen this a couple days ago then he would have come to the defence of his parents, but now he only wished to encourage his father's fear, especially since he knew what was going to happen to him after this strange man left. Upon closer inspection he saw that the man had a small box wrapped in dark green wrapping paper in his hands.

 

"I see that you haven't changed much Tunie."

 

"Don't call me that you disgusting sewer rat! Why on earth would they send you of all people to come get them anyway?!"

 

His mum shouted at the newcomer. He swore her face was getting redder than his dad's at this point. Dudley felt something pull on his shirt behind him and took a second to realize it was Harry. He could feel Harry shaking slightly through his shirt and thought that if clothing could talk his would be screaming in pain with how tight Harry was holding onto him through it. He was probably worried mum would turn on him soon like she always did. The stranger seemed to take notice of Harry as well, glancing at them both momentarily before he turned his attention back to his mother.

 

"The headmaster thought that I would be a better fit to collect the children given our…. past."

 

Dudley watched as Petunia's face somehow got even redder than his father's at that. She huffed and glared at him once more only to promptly turn around and went to sit on hers and his dad's bed. Dudley thought she looked like a five year old child that just got told they wouldn't be able to get the toy they wanted, or him last Christmas now that he thought about it. He really should apologize to Harry for literally everything that's happened in his life so far. It's funny how one moment in your life could change your entire look on what you've done and how utterly wrong you've been. His father on the other hand decided that his wife had given up on kicking the strange man out to quickly and decided to make himself look bigger.

 

_ "He looksss like a strange mix between a pig and a bird like that."  _ Harry whispered from behind him. 

 

Dudley let out a small laugh and shook his head in agreement as his father puffed up in front of the man and shouted at him to leave. He imagined his father with a pig's tail coming out of his pants and bouncing in the air as he waved his arms around in frustration. The intruder seemed to completely ignore his father's display and turned to them once more with shocked wide eyes as Harry spoke. The spontaneous rip that came from his father's pants seconds later made both he and Harry practically jump out of their skins. Dudley watched in horror as the pig tail he had just imagined in his head made its way out of his father's jeans just like he thought it would. He felt the absence of Harry's hand soon after and didn't need to turn around to know he had turned into a snake and was probably hiding in a corner somewhere.

 

Dudley ignored his mother's horrid screeching on the bed and the stranger's shocked expression in favor of finding his cousin after his father took notice of his new appendage. There were only so many places his cousin could hide in the small shack and figured he'd be in the bathroom since it was the only other room with a door. Sure enough, after Dudley trudged into the other room and closed the door he quickly spotted a small green snake curled up defensively between the tub and the toilet. The garden snake that was currently his cousin was hissing rather valiantly at him as he sat down on the cold tile floor and waited for him to calm down. 

 

He knew Harry had a habit of thinking more like a snake than a boy at any given point in the day and that it got worse when he was frightened. So grabbing him right now wasn't an option unless he wanted to get bit. He scooted himself against the door and leaned on it to hopefully show that Harry wasn't in any danger and closed his eyes. The noise from the adults in the other room filtered through the closed door and tuned into it even though it was nearly impossible to hear anything over his mother's crowing.

 

"How dare you do that to my husband! Change him back immediately and leave! You have absolutely no business being around us!"

 

"I assure you I wouldn't have come if it were any other children but the fact that Harry and Dudley are both wizards made me curious. Not to mention the fact that you somehow failed to inform us that Harry is somehow a maledictus like his mother even though it is impossible and that your own son is apparently a parselmouth which as you know is an extremely rare trait. Regardless of these two facts I am only here to bring them shopping for their school supplies. After which they will be returned to you and expected to be on the train to Hogwarts come the first of September as you are already aware. As far as your husband's new appendage is concerned I'm sure a doctor would be able to remove it quite easily enough but I can't help wondering why you'd want it removed in the first place. I would have thought he would look even more appealing to you that way since he seems even more piggish now than when you first met."

 

Dudley had been so intent on listening past the door that he hadn't realized Harry had made his way onto his lap until he changed from his current garden snake form to a rather large bush viper and flicked his tongue out. Deciding to give the snake his full attention and ignore the conversation outside Dudley saw that Harry had changed the color of his scales from a vibrant green to an ashy black that gleamed blue under the lights. 

 

"You know the fact that you can turn into a snake is just plain rude but the fact that you can apparently turn into any of them is just cruel. It makes for a perfectly good alibi when you decide to kill us all one day you know"

 

_ "I know. I've thought about it before on occasion actually." _

 

"Jesus, Harry!"

 

_ "What? You're the one that brought it up! I thought we were being honest!" _

 

"Well yeah but  _ maybe don't admit to wanting to kill usss all when there are adultsss in the other room!"  _

 

_ "Why not? It'sss not like they can understand me." _

 

_"I don't know,_ maybe because _it'sss a tad wrong? Just a thought."_

 

_ "Fine." _

 

_ "Good." _

 

By the time Harry changed and they went back out to the others Dudley's parents were gone. The man explained that they had decided to go back home and that they would be returned to their house after shopping. He also informed them that his name was Severus Snape and that he was a teacher at Hogwarts.

 

"Do you have any questions for me before we leave?"

 

The boys glanced at each other quickly before asking rapid fire questions at the same time.

 

"What's a parselmouth?"

 

"What's a maledictus?"

 

"What class do you teach?" 

 

"Did you know my mother?"

 

"What's in the box?"

 

"What are we supposed to call you?"

 

The man looked stunned once all of their questions had been asked and they were waiting anxiously for a reply. He went on to explain that a parselmouth is a person who can talk to snakes and that it was an extremely rare trait to have. While a maledictus was normally a witch cursed to turn into an animal and that they would eventually be forced to live their lives as their animal form instead of their human one. Dudley gulped at that and imagined Harry stuck as a giant Burmese python or a small rattlesnake.

 

"But I don't want to live the rest of my life as a snake! I mean don't really enjoy being human but that's because Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon are mean! They make me talk in English all the time even though they know I hate it!" Harry shouted.

 

"There is a cure for it Harry. I made a batch of it for your mother before…"

 

"You knew my mother?" Harry interrupted loudly.

 

"Yes. We were best friends when we were growing up. She was a maledictus like you but her form was an owl instead of a snake. As far as your questions go Mr. Dursley, I teach Defence Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts and the box is a present for Harry seeing as it is his birthday. As far as what you can call me I suppose you should get used to calling me Professor Snape for the upcoming school year."

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Harry's eyes widened as he peered at the box in the professor's hand. It was small, whatever it was but it was also his mother's so he knew that he would cherish it forever.

 

"Can I open it?" Harry whispered out.

 

He didn't mean for his voice to be so soft but he was already on edge from the previous events and English really did sound awful coming out of his mouth. It always felt like his mouth was full of chalk dust when he spoke it and he had to work around how a snake would think and speak versus a person. He couldn't help the small gasp that he involuntarily let out when the professor smiled at him slightly and gave him the box. Harry ripped at the wrapping paper and let it fall to the floor as he tore open the box to reveal a silver ring with two interlocking hoops on the top that looked like arms linked together. 

 

"The knot on it is an iteration of the true love knot. I have a similar one with an eternity knot on it instead on a necklace I constantly wear. I made them myself just before we graduated from Hogwarts and we used them as friendship rings. I thought that you would enjoy having something she used to wear for your birthday."

 

Harry could only nod his head in agreement as he took the ring out of the box. He had never gotten a real gift before much less anything that had to do with his mother. He wasn't allowed to ask questions about her at the Dursleys unless he wanted to get hit with something. His aunt and Uncle viewed his mother's name as the foulest curse word imaginable to the point that even the flower wasn't allowed anywhere near the house. He started to place the ring on his right thumb only realize the small metal probably would fall right off when he changed into a snake.

 

"Could you… maybe make it bigger? So that it's a bracelet instead of a ring or would that be wrong?"

 

"Why do you wish for that?"

 

"Well, it's just that when I were to eventually turn into a snake then the ring would probably fall off because it's so small but if you could turn it into a bracelet then it would maybe fit in both of my forms. ...I think."

 

"Very well then. Since it was made with magic it is possible." 

 

Harry watched in awe as the small ring got thicker and grew so that it was a small bracelet just as he wanted instead of a ring. He wiggled it onto his arm before it was done and found that it stopped growing once it was around his wrist and actually shrunk down a bit so that it fit nicely against his skin.

 

"Awesome." Dudley whispered out from beside him.

 

Harry felt the sentiment entirely but could only grin at his new present as Snape explained that since it was magic and was now his then he was the only one who could remove it. He had made them with that aspect in mind in case they got stolen and while originally they were intended for just he and Lily he had changed her ring to be able to store a bit of Harry's magic inside of it so that he would be its new owner instead of her. 

 

"We should be off soon. I believe it's time for you to gather your things now as we still have a long day ahead."

 

The boys did as they were told and went to gather their belongings only to find that they had none. Dudley suggested that his parents had probably stashed their clothes, other than their pajamas, in with their own this morning when they were packing. Neither boys noticed Snape frowning as they came back from the bathroom with only their pajamas. 

 

"Is that.. all that you have?" 

 

"Apparently." The boys say in unison.

 

"I see. Then our first stop shall be to get Mr. Dursley a locket."

 

"A locket sir?" Dudley asked hesitantly. Harry wasn't sure why Dudley needed a locket but he knew not to question adults to closely.

 

Professor Snape seemed to not feel that Dudley needed a reply as he just walked out of the cabin and left the boys to follow. Harry shrugged when Dudley looked at him like the man was crazy but they decided to follow him outside anyway as they clutched their pajamas in their arms. They arrived outside only to find the odd professor holding his right hand out with a long stick in it, like he was trying to hail a taxi.

 

_ "What'sss the stick for?"  _ Harry whispered to his cousin as they got closer. The leaves crunched under their feet as they made their way to the man.

 

_ "Your guesss is asss good as mine at thisss point."  _

 

"For the record Mr. Potter," Harry straightened up as stiff as a board, "I do not mind if you speak in parseltongue so long as your cousin is willing to translate if you are trying to ask me something." Snape said without turning around.

 

"Th- Thank you sir."

 

"Um, what's the stick for Professor?" Dudley asked once they got next to him.

 

"Hm? Ah. My apologies, this is my wand. I'm trying to hail the knight bus so that it can take us to diagon alley."

 

_ "Did he just say diagonally?" _

 

_ "No. Diagon alley. It'sss two words I think." _

 

_ "What? Is there a reverse lane and sideways avenue as well?" _

 

_ "I don't know! Why don't you ask him?"  _ Dudley snapped impatiently at him.

 

Harry decided he was going to do just that when the biggest bus he had ever seen pulled up in front of them in a flurry. At least he was pretty sure it was a bus. The thing was dark purple and looked more like a van if it hadn't been for the two stacks of windows encased in metal that protruded off the top of the van base. It looked more like a backwards camper if you asked him. The bus opened its door to reveal a short white haired man with big round glasses on his face who turned and greeted them all with a smile. Harry thought he very much resembled a small owl when he did so.

 

"Why hello there! How many for the bus? Three? That'll be one gallon and thirteen sickles then!" The owl man said to Snape in quick succession.

 

Snape gave the man what looked to be coins and went straight onto the bus without so much as glancing back at them. They followed closely behind him this time and stared at the floating seats as they walked by. 

 

"No luggage?" A tall brown haired man asked them as they passed on their way down the aisle. He had on a uniform similar to the driver with black slacks and a black vest and shirt combination with a bus hat on his head.

 

"No Stan. Now leave us be and let Ernie know we're headed to diagon alley please. I'd prefer to stop at Madame Elaine's Treasure Trove if possible."

 

"Righto Professor Snape!" The man replied quickly and tilted his hat at them as he walked away.

 

Snape sat down on one of the floating seats and eyed them expectedly making the children squirm a bit before they followed his lead once more. No words were spoken between them as the bus started moving. An announcement came on from the driver that they should buckle up before they really got going. The three of them did as they were told as they looked down to see seat belt attachments now next to them. Harry had just buckled his in when the bus jerked forward. The strap did nothing to keep him in his seat due to his small size as he went flying through the air. Midway through his ascent panic took over his senses as he changed into a dark red leaf viper and landed in a pile of suitcases that had fallen off of the overhead rack.

 

He heard Dudley and the Professor shout for him as the bus jerked once more. Harry burrowed himself under the suitcases and tried not to get squished. Eventually the bus stopped and the suitcases were moved around him to reveal a very concerned Dudley and Professor Snape. Harry slithered out of his spot rather slowly and changed back to human with a dazed expression on his face. He was pretty sure he heard Dudley ask if he was alright but the vibrations in his jaw were still translating sounds for him that humans wouldn't normally worry about.

 

Going from snake to human when he was trying to hear something was always strange. Sometimes he missed entire words that were spoken and other times he just had to take a few seconds to reply. He found that his hearing was relatively the same in both forms for some reason: vibrations were sent to his jaw and then he could somehow make sense of them. Sometimes he could translate rather loud vibrations and other times he could only translate normal ones depending on the snake he chose to be. 

 

Once they were off the bus and said their goodbyes Harry went back to holding onto the seam of Dudley's shirt once more as a safety net. Snape led them through the odd traffic of the crowded alley and Harry ignored the strange stares and whispers about him as his jaw vibrated slightly with the sound currents. He led them into a shop that looked oddly enough like an open treasure chest that said Madame Elaine's Treasure Trove on the sign above the old door. 

 

Madame Elaine, or who Harry had assumed was her, looked a lot like Dudley's Aunt Marge if she were as thin as a toothpick. Her attitude however was the complete opposite of the woman as she smiled kindly at Harry and didn't comment on his unruly hair. The shop itself looked like a big antique store with baubles and trinkets everywhere. Harry swore he saw a necklace move by itself even though he knew it was impossible. Maybe he really did need glasses?

 

"Verus! It's so good to see you again!" The woman yelled from behind the counter.

 

_ "Verusss?"  _ Dudley asked in a hushed tone.

 

_ "Nickname?"  _ Harry supplied while cautiously eyeing the woman behind the counter.

 

"I was wondering if you had a locket and a booth currently available Elaine?"

 

"Oh of course! Anything I should know about?"

 

"Not really, just a reducio and engorgio charm combination, an extension charm and some atmospheric charms for the inside."

 

"You are aware that you'll have to catalogue the extension charm correct?"

 

"I was hoping you could make an exception as it isn't for me."

 

"Oh? You don't normally give out presents. Who's it for then? If you give me a good reason I'll keep it off the books."

 

Snape turned towards them at them and eyed them expectedly. Harry wasn't sure if they were supposed to leave or explain that the locket was for Dudley for some reason. He didn't have time to ask before Dudley was pulling him along to go peruse the shop, who had apparently picked up on the social cues that the professor was trying to impress upon them before he could. His cousin drug him all the way to the back of the store to look around without so much as a second glance. There was even more weird stuff in the back like jewelry boxes that glowed and metal eyes on locks that followed you. 

 

The cousins eventually went their separate ways to explore the shop while the adults talked. Harry had every intention of looking at all the small shiny things. He truly did, until he heard squeaking behind a rather old looking bookcase. He followed the squeaking vigorously passed old grandfather clocks, through rows of strange globes, and even under a table until he finally cornered the mousey morsel. All of his instincts were telling him that he was  _ hungry, the mouse was food, it's fresh.  _ While the human part of his brain was screaming at him that was not proper behavior for a boy to do. That mice are not food when he's human but he's  _ hungry _ . He hasn't eaten anything more than that bit of broccoli from yesterday. He didn't remember the last time he ate before that. He swiped up the snake with deft hands and raised it to his mouth, ignoring the fact that it was very much alive and covered in fur. He ignored the footsteps coming from around the corner as he lowered the squirming mouse. He faintly registered Dudley staring at him but couldn't make out the expression on his face. His only concern was the mouse in his hands and how fast it would take him to eat it.

"Harry look at- Harry no! Drop the mouse! Drop it! We will eat later. Now drop the mouse!" Dudley shouted.

 

Harry glared at his cousin for interrupting his impromptu meal and screamed when he was suddenly drenched in water. Harry reflexively dropped the mouse, ignoring the thud and subsequent scampering, and wiped his eyes of the water that he was somehow drenched in. Glancing up afterward to see a small storm cloud fading from atop his head.

 

"I'm not a stupid cat!" Harry said once he opened his eyes and saw the smirk on Dudley's face.

 

"You're right! You're a stupid snake!"

 

"You can stop now Umdri." Dudley replied in a low tone like he was talking to someone else.

 

Harry huffed as he thought about searching for the mouse again until a new noise caught his attention. Chattering that he could only describe as one similar to a chipmunk was speaking animatedly near him. Harry gawked at the scene before him as Dudley seemed to be speaking to an eight inch gremlin with blue skin and a red stripe on its head who was standing on his shoulder and holding onto his neck for support. It had big floppy ears on the sides of its head and two small black horns protruding from the top. Its eyes were a deep purple color and it had black sharp nails on each of its hands. Both its hands and feet seemed to have three digits with its feet looking similar to a bird's. The strangest thing about all of it had to be that both Harry and Dudley seemed to be able to understand the tiny creature.

 

**"Glad to be of help Keeper Dudley!"**

 

"What is that thing and how did it get me soaked with water? Also how can we understand it?"

 

"Well first of all he's not an it he's a him and his name is Umdri. I'm not sure how you can understand him but I know I can because he bit me when I was trying to help him get away from another snake that's in here."

 

**"Honestly Prince Harry, it's like you've never spoken to another magical being before! Didn't your Oma teach you anything?"**

 

"Ugh, again with the Prince stuff! Did that snake tell you to call me that? How many times do I have to tell them that I'm not a prince for them to understand! Also I don't know what the hell an Oma is, so no!"

 

**"Ah! Well then… that is odd. No matter, I shall explain as much as I can to you little princeling! I am what wizards call a Coco Rumsey Catcher. Although we prefer the term Oruwin. As for what you are little highness; you are a prince of snakes and when you grow big and strong you shall be a king of snakes!"**

 

"King of snakes? How is that even possible? There's no such thing as a king of snakes."

 

**"Well of course there is! There is only one creature known as the king of snakes Majesty! They are known by many names sire: the great hatcher of dragons, the protector of creatures, the golem sister's champion, the petrifier of wizards, the most hated of spiders! Why I am referring to none other than the great basilisk! That is what you truly are majesty! Most creatures bow to your decree, others hide in fear and the muggle snakes are your most faithful retainers. The wizarding world is where you truly belong and where you shall rule with your mate until your designated end as fate sees fit!"**

 

"I'm not some great big snake king! I'm just Harry! Boring, ordinary Harry Potter who has dead parents!"

 

**"Of course you are not a king yet majesty! You still need to grow up. In due time you will grow to be the king you were meant to be. Now, Keeper Dudley I wish to find a home that I can grow my precious seedlings in and preferably one that you may also call home if you so desire! Shall we go searching my Keeper?"**

 

"Seedlings?" Harry asked his cousin. 

 

He didn't feel like trying to ask the Oruwin more things since he thought it would be a lost cause. 

 

"He takes care of flowers and other magical plants. He can do small elemental magic to help with their growth which is how he made the small storm cloud. He was trying to find a nice field to grow some plants in but then he got chased into here by that other snake. I helped him out and now he calls me Keeper. Said he wants to stay with me if possible but that his search for a nice field with a low chance of predators comes first."

 

Harry hummed at this new bit of information. His head felt like it was going to explode. Sure he was glad Dudley made a new friend and it made sense that said friend wanted to try to do what he was supposed to before he decided to stick with Dudley but his happiness was short lived and replaced with panic quite quickly. It was bad enough that every other snake he had ever come across had called him a prince or some variation of but now this tiny magical creature said he was supposed to be a king when he grew up? He barely knew anything about the wizarding world, Professor Snape hadn't exactly been helpful so far, and according to this new guy he was supposed to rule in it with a mate! 

 

No, no, absolutely not. He didn't want to be a king. He didn't even really know what a basilisk was but it didn't sound like anything good. He just wanted to get out of this shop, get the rest of his school supplies and wait out the rest of summer so that he could learn how to do magic at Hogwarts. In order to do that though he needed to find Snape. Now. He found him still chatting with the shopkeeper at the front desk and it seemed that the only thing had changed from when he left the man was that he now had a silver beehive pendant in front of him on the counter. He heard Dudley come up behind him and faintly registered Umdri chattering away from his perch. He paid them no mind as the Professor looked at them with a pleased expression only for it to turn into confusion seconds later.

 

"Mr. Dursley why exactly do you have a Coco Rumsey Catcher standing on your shoulder?"

 

"I saved him from a snake in here. He's trying to find a place to grow plants that doesn't have a lot of predators but he also wants to stay with me so it's a bit tricky."

 

"I see. I believe I have something for you that will assist you in both of these endeavors."

 

Snape grabbed the beehive and brought them into a medium sized room off to the side of the shop. He set the little pendant on the ground and the boys watched as the nest grew in size. It was silver in color and looked like it had just been plucked off a tree with a pointed top and a relatively flat bottom. The black truncated oval opening near the bottom that looked like it had been painted on was now big enough that they were able to step into it easily.

 

"How?" Harry asked with a breathless tone.

 

Snape quickly explained that the inside actually had another world he had created by using magic and that he intended for this place to be a safe space for the boys to go to if they needed, whether in the muggle or wizarding world.  

 

"I've put an altered enlarging charm on it so that it's easier for you to enter. Normally you would have to use your wands in order to use any magic however I've altered this spell so that once it comes in contact with this ring." He lifted his right hand to show them an ornate silver ring that had celtic markings on the sides with a diamond O in the middle that had the bottom lines extending from it a bit.

 

"Then you will be able to enter it without casting. The symbol is the ancient futhark rune Othala, which loosely means home." He said to them as he produced a similar ring to Dudley and gave a rectangular pendant version of the same color to Harry that he quickly fastened onto his bracelet.

 

"In its smaller form it I made it appear that the opening was painted on to not attract attention but in reality it's an open hole to a hollow nest. It will shrink back down in size once you are inside and will grow once more when you are ready to leave."

 

Before any of the three wizards could move the Oruwin jumped off of Dudley's shoulder and ran straight into the nest. Dudley called and ran after him only for Harry and Snape to follow closely behind. 

 

The inside of the nest was filled with plush green grass and blue skies. It even had a sun, trees, mountains and Harry could swear he smelled water coming from somewhere. Snape told them that there was a lake a few hundred feet away along with fruit bearing trees and vegetables growing in natural patches. He even added game such as rabbits, toads, deer and a few snakes and foxes for predators. If the animals got to be too much then they could discuss measures to tone them down but that the populations should stay relatively fine due to everything having a limited food and water source.

 

Once they looked around some more Dudley and Harry both expressed an interest in having some kind of shelter created in the new space and were soon kicked out by Umdri who said that he would be more than willing to assist them so long as they let him stay and tend to the grounds while they were on the outside. All three wizards agreed and soon exited the nest. Dudley picked up the pendant and put it on his neck after he grabbed its chain from Snape. Both thanked the professor for the extremely generous gift and thanked him even more when he explained that it was already paid for. Food was the only thoughts on their minds as Dudley recounted the event of Harry going after a mouse in his human form.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright so I know this was longer than normal, between work and writing on my days off, plus other stuff. It took forever to get out!!   
> Sorry about that but it does raise a question:
> 
> Would you rather I put them out as I finish or write ahead a chapter or two then post the one y'all need to read?
> 
> Thanks for reading!! Be sure to let me know what you think if you want to!!!


	3. Status update

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Status of story

New chapter coming out tonight!! I know I haven't posted in.... well awhile but stuff happened and due to the current content of this story it wasn't good for me to be writing it.

There will be mentions of abuse in chapter 3!!! You've been warned now!!

 

This has already been posted as a comment on the previous chapter but I'm making it an update chapter for those who don't mess with comments!!

GIANT APOLOGIES!!

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed!! I have a general outline/plot but if you want to see a specific thing for future chapters for book one let me know!!


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